Following remarks in Ohio that highlighted his plan to improve education, President Obama’s campaign released a new TV ad on Wednesday that accuses Mitt Romney of being out of touch with average American families.
The spot, called “Children,” accuses Romney of saying “class sizes don’t matter,” and argues that Rep. Paul Ryan's proposed budget would “cut education funding by 20 percent.”
“These are all issues that really he personally cannot relate to, to be able to afford an education, to want the best public education system for your children," a mother says in the spot, calling attention to Romney’s personal wealth.
As the president takes a two-day campaign tour through Ohio and Nevada to push his education policy, the ad will air in Virginia and Ohio on Thursday.
In remarks in Ohio on Tuesday, the president mentioned his own struggle to pay off student debts.
“I am only standing before you today because of the chance my education gave me,” Obama told the crowd. “So I can tell you with some experience that making higher education more affordable for our young people is something I’ve got a personal stake in. It’s something I've made a top priority of my presidency.”
The Romney campaign responded to this latest ad, saying the spot puts the president "directly at odds with his own education secretary, who has promoted teacher quality – not class size – as the most important factor in a good education," Romney spokeswoman Amanda Henneberg wrote in an e-mail to National Journal.
"President Obama and his campaign have put misleading and hypocritical attacks ahead of a real discussion about education policy," Henneberg wrote. "As president, Mitt Romney will pursue genuine education reform that puts parents and students ahead of special interests and gives every child a chance to succeed.”
Obama also released a radio spot in Virginia this week that criticizes Romney on infrastructure. The spot imitates a local traffic report that targets congested routes in the washington DC area, pointing out that Ryan’s budget would slash “investments in road and infrastructure projects.”